With the cooler weather coming soon, it is time for Ohio residents to start planning their transition from outdoor fitness activities to indoor. Northeast Ohio has a wealth of bike trails, hiking, beaches, swimming, outdoor sports and other ways to stay outside (for free) in the Summer. But once it dips below 50 degrees, those outdoor activities seem a bit less appealing and eventually only are options for hard core outdoorsy people.

So what are some of your options this Winter to stay in shape?

Join a Gym. This is obvious, but one nice thing that has changed in the last few years is you can join gyms month to month and only use them in the Winter months.

Buy limited fitness equipment to stay fit at home. A tread mill and some kettle bells might be all you need to stay beach body ready in your home. Look for used kettle bells to save some money.

Join Indoor Sports. We recently covered options of Indoor Tennis and Indoor Soccer. Basketball would be another obvious one. Maybe you can even find adult dodge ball. There are plenty of indoor sporting opportunities for kids and adults.

Do Winter sports. Cross country and downhill skiing are great workouts. Snow shoe hiking? Sure. You can also simply hike snow trails with some extra preparation.

Watch what you eat. There is the issue of paying close attention to your Winter diet. Do not start eating more at night because you are spending more time in front of the television. Do not cut back on fresh fruits and vegetables just because they cost a little bit more. Do not stop grilling healthy lean meats just because you have to push some snow off the grill cover first.

With some advanced planning and careful attention being paid to how your habits change, you can stay fit and firm no matter how long the ground is covered in permafrost.

Akron’s annual Italian-American Festival is organized by The Council of the Italian-American Societies of Summit County, an organization of different Italian-American groups founded in Akron in 1947. Since they have started, the money that is raised from this annual festival is used to provide scholarships for deserving high school students as well as contribute to charities that help the localities in Akron, Ohio.

The Italian-American Societies of Summit County prepares for this event by gathering volunteers, sponsors, entertainers and vendors for the event. The preparation alone takes months and everything must be planned according in order for the festival to go smoothly. The organization also receives help from the Akron Police Department in order to guarantee the safety of the people participating in the event.

As if the prospect of helping deserving children receive scholarships is not enough to convince one to participate in the event, the organizers have made it even better for the participants. When we think of Italy, we probably think of pizza and pasta, not to mention the tunes that speak volumes about their culture and way of life. Well, visitors of this event will not be disappointed. The day is filled with Bocce tournaments, entertainment for the kids and music.

What of the food and wine? Now, those two deserve some special mention because no self-respecting and heritage-loving Italian will go without those two. To add to the excitement, guests of the festival will have their choice amongst food vendors lining up the streets with their authentic Italian fare of Gnocchi, Pizza Fritta, Italian sausage and other mouth-watering dishes from their homeland. The organizers have also set up pizza eating contests and wine tasting booths for those who want to sample selections from Italy.

Tickets for the festival may be purchase beforehand by contacting the organizers.